Carnival in Rio Cruise: Ilhabela

In this fifth post of a multi-part series, Bethany explores the next Brazilian port on her Carnival in Rio cruise on Azamara: Ilhabela.

Back for my second cruise on Azamara…this time I am exploring South America. The 15-night Carnival in Rio cruise is round-trip from Buenos Aires, going up to Rio de Janeiro and back. Join me as I explore the many wonderful ports in Argentina, Uruguay, and Brazil along the way!

Carnival in Rio Full Itinerary

Below is the full itinerary for the trip. This post includes details about Cruise Day 6: Ilhabela, Brazil. Looking for info on earlier stops? Check out the ‘Links’ section at the end of this post!

• Pre-Cruise – February 9 & 10: Buenos Aires, Argentina (embarkation)
• Cruise Day 1 & 2 – February 11 & 12: Montevideo, Uruguay
• Cruise Day 3 & 4 – February 13 & 14: At Sea
• Cruise Day 5 – February 15: Santos, Brazil
• Cruise Day 6 – February 16: Ilhabela, Brazil
• Cruise Day 7 – February 17: Parati, Brazil
• Cruise Day 8 – February 18: Buzios, Brazil
• Cruise Day 9-11 – February 19-21: Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
• Cruise Day 12 & 13 – February 22 & 23: At Sea
• Cruise Day 14 – February 24: Punta del Este, Uruguay
• Post-Cruise Day 1 – February 25: Buenos Aires (disembarkation)
• Post-Cruise Day 2 – February 26: Iguazu Falls, Brazil
• Post-Cruise Day 3 – February 27: Iguazu Falls, Argentina

Cruise Day 6

Thursday, February 16 marks day 6 on this fabulous cruise! I spent the day in idyllic Ilhabela, Brazil. This is another tender port for us, so the ship was docked out in the channel for the day while I got out and explored on the “Panoramic Ilhabela and Toca Waterfalls” excursion. Once again, it was a picture-perfect sail-in as we arrived at Ilhabela.

It was the perfect morning to enjoy my room service breakfast out on my veranda. The weather was lovely, I got to watch the gorgeous scenery as we sailed in, and I also got to watch them launch the tender boats (which are stored on the deck just below my cabin).

Barreiro Viewpoint

The tender ride was smooth and quick, and I soon arrived at the port. Once at the port my tour group and I met up with our guide and we ventured out in a small bus to our first stop: the Barreiro Viewpoint. From this spot we had a nice view of the ship docked in the São Sebastião channel.

Church of Nossa Senhora D’Ajuda

From the viewpoint we continued onto the church of Nossa Senhora D’Ajuda. This quaint church was built in 1549. Our guide explained that they used crushed shells to make the material used to build the walls of the church. There are several beautiful paintings on the walls and ceilings of the church. The ornate altar is also gorgeous, with its striking cobalt blue color.

There are also several smaller vignettes along the walls of the church, honoring various saints and other religious figures. I also saw a lot of the Portuguese influence here, with the same decorative azulejos (colorful ceramic tiles) that are everywhere in Lisbon.

Agua Branca Waterfall

Next up was a quick visit to the Agua Branca Waterfall. This waterfall is used to generate hydroelectric power for the region. Along with the falls themselves, there were colorful paintings depicting some of the local wildlife, as well as some vibrant flowers.

Toca Waterfall

Our final stop on today’s excursion was the Toca Waterfall. This waterfall system is located within an old sugar and banana farm. We first had an opportunity to explore the handful of falls and the gorgeous lush scenery within the rainforest.

The Toca Waterfall is a peaceful and serene place to visit. We had plenty of free time here to wander around the area and enjoy the views.

Cachaça

After exploring the falls, we had a tour of the facility where they make cachaça from the farm’s sugar cane. Cachaça is a traditional Brazilian spirit made from fermented sugarcane juice. It is the key ingredient in the country’s famous cocktail, the caipirinha. They make several varieties of cachaça here, including branca (white), prata (silver) and ouro (gold). The cachaça is also blended with different flavorings as well, such as cinnamon, lemongrass, or coffee.

After the informative tour, we had the opportunity to sidle up to the bar and sample the various types of cachaça. I tried a few different flavors, and they were all pretty tasty!

Wrapping Up the Day

Our guide brought us back to the pier after the excursion ended. I wandered a bit through the main pier area, which has a lot of different shops and restaurants. They also had a pretty elaborate stage set up for the local carnaval festivities!

I made my way back to the pier and caught a tender boat back to the ship. Once back on the ship, it was another perfect afternoon to relax by the pool while sipping a cool cocktail. Cheers!

The setting sun was lovely as it ducked behind some of the hills surrounding the channel. We set sail again after dark, on our way to Parati, Brazil. I enjoyed another delicious dinner onboard tonight, this time in the main dining room called Discoveries on Deck 5. After dinner, I headed up to the Living Room on Deck 10 and enjoyed a dirty martini while listening to the Marvelous Funk band.

Conclusion

Day 6 of the cruise in Ilhabela, Brazil, was another fabulous day. I really enjoyed the excursion again today, which had another nice variety of activities and was done at a good pace. I had plenty of time at each stop to enjoy the area and explore as much as I wanted to.

Links

Click the button below to read the next post in the series:

Click the buttons below for earlier parts of the series:

Click the buttons below for more information about Azamara, and to read about my first cruise on Azamara in June 2022:

Note: I fully funded this trip on my own and received no compensation or any other benefits from any service providers I used along the way. The opinions expressed here are my own and I am not being compensated by any service providers.